Calif.’s car culture hurts fight against climate change
By Dale Kasler, Sacramento Bee
Californians can’t shake their love affair with cars – and pickups and SUVs. That’s hurting the greenest state in the union’s much-publicized crusade against climate change.
While California is making headway in reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the rate of progress is slowing. Emissions fell by a scant 0.3 percent in 2015, the last year for which figures are available. It was one of the smallest year-to-year declines recorded since California enacted laws aimed at defeating global warming more than a decade ago, and calls into question the state’s ability to meet long-term goals for curtailing carbon.
The chief culprit: California’s cars and trucks.